An Austin Gay Christmas
The Austin Gay Men’s Chorus delivered a heartfelt Christmas performance this past weekend. The camaraderie of the guys was evident as they sang 20 tunes ranging from traditional to campy.…
Power Politics in China
Much of Chinese politics is opaque, even for the experts, but certain moments have entered the public consciousness in the West. One of these was the infamous Gang of Four,…
Murillo Paintings in Ft. Worth
The Kimbell Art Museum in Ft. Worth is marking its 50th year. The Kimbell Art Foundation was formed in 1936 by Kay Kimbell and his wife Velma. Kay’s sister and…
Lewis Delivers Masterful Violin Concerto
It is not easy to compete with a Mozart symphony, which was also on the programme for the Austin Symphony concert last night, but Geneva Lewis’ performance of a violin…
Does Kelly Ripa really ‘Tell All’ in her Book?
Review written by Dr. M. Emanuele For those who don’t watch daytime TV, Kelly Ripa has been the co-host of Live! for 20 years. She has been honored with six…
The Art of Marta
On one of my trips to London this year I dined at the best Italian restaurant of all, La Mia Mama. It is a unique place in London, where all…
Civil War by Other Means
“Democracy was our civil religion. The last 6 or 7 years have shaken me because I’ve seen changes in our institutions, threats to our institutions and undermining of our institutions…
Barber of Seville makes the cut in Austin
While hearing rarely-performed operas is always a treat, watching a famous opera is akin to comfort food. Austin Opera is serving up heaps of comfort food this week with two…
Columbus and the Apocalypse
The end of the world has been prophesied many times in the past centuries, but the world is still here. Thus it is appropriate that the subtitle of this book…
Epicurus in Rome
The Epicurean mantra was “avoid engaging in politics,’ which is good advice now as it was some 2,000 years ago. This book on how the philosophy of Epicurus was received…